A Person with Inspiration
Then the men rose from there and looked toward Sodom, and Abraham went with them to send them on the way. And the Lord said, “Shall I hide from Abraham what I am doing, since Abraham shall surely become a great and mighty nation, and all the nations of the earth shall be blessed in him? For I have known him, in order that he may command his children and his household after him, that they keep the way of the Lord, to do righteousness and justice, that the Lord may bring to Abraham what He has spoken to him.” And the Lord said, “Because the outcry against Sodom and Gomorrah is great, and because their sin is very grave, I will go down now and see whether they have done altogether according to the outcry against it that has come to Me; and if not, I will know.” Then the men turned away from there and went toward Sodom, but Abraham still stood before the Lord. And Abraham came near and said, “Would You also destroy the righteous with the wicked? Suppose there were fifty righteous within the city; would You also destroy the place and not spare it for the fifty righteous that were in it? Far be it from You to do such a thing as this, to slay the righteous with the wicked, so that the righteous should be as the wicked; far be it from You! Shall not the Judge of all the earth do right?” So the Lord said, “If I find in Sodom fifty righteous within the city, then I will spare all the place for their sakes.” Then Abraham answered and said, “Indeed now, I who am but dust and ashes have taken it upon myself to speak to the Lord: Suppose there were five less than the fifty righteous; would You destroy all of the city for lack of five?” So He said, “If I find there forty-five, I will not destroy it.” And he spoke to Him yet again and said, “Suppose there should be forty found there?” So He said, “I will not do it for the sake of forty.” Then he said, “Let not the Lord be angry, and I will speak: Suppose thirty should be found there?” So He said, “I will not do it if I find thirty there.” And he said, “Indeed now, I have taken it upon myself to speak to the Lord: Suppose twenty should be found there?” So He said, “I will not destroy it for the sake of twenty.” Then he said, “Let not the Lord be angry, and I will speak but once more: Suppose ten should be found there?” And He said, “I will not destroy it for the sake of ten.” So the Lord went His way as soon as He had finished speaking with Abraham; and Abraham returned to his place. (Gen 18:16-33)
In verse 17, God said, “Shall I hide from Abraham what I am doing?” If our God did not hide what He was doing from someone but revealed everything to him, how blessed is that man? While from some people God hides what He is doing; to others He reveals. To be able to know the works God is doing is called inspiration. Hence we long to be filled with inspiration. Without having inspiration, we would be unaware even if God’s work is right before our eyes. There’s nothing to do. You know the people who are sitting outside the building always playing Korean chess? They are there playing chess every single day. And even the other day, when there was such a strong wind that even branches almost broke off the trees, they were still playing chess. They don’t have much to do. However, there are even Christians who in their latter years idle away their time doing nothing. They just sit around at home watching television. They have no inspiration. They don’t know what they ought to be doing. Even the Lord’s servants don’t know what they should be doing if they don’t have inspiration. They just have a lot of time on their hands, and nothing much to do.
However, what changed for us after we came to know the Picture of God’s will is that we became busier. We don’t have time. Among those in China that came to know Berea, many people testify that they are short on time. They don’t have enough time. In other words, since they came to know the works God is doing, they also take part in them. To whom does God reveal His works? First of all, He reveals them to people that acknowledge who God is. One needs to know who God is in order for God to also reveal His works to him. Nobody knew who Jesus was. When He asked, “Who do people say I am?” The people said He was one of the prophets, John the Baptist or Elijah. Then He asked His disciples, “Who do you say I am?” And one answered, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God”. And Jesus replied, “This was not revealed to you by man but by my Father in heaven”. So that disciple answered precisely who Jesus is. And Jesus immediately revealed what He was going to do. “On this rock I will build My church and the gates of Hades will not overcome it”. Hence Jesus revealed His will to the one that confessed his faith in Jesus, acknowledging who Jesus is.
In the same way, knowing Jesus is the key to having inspiration. For then, God reveals what He will do to such a person. That is why even today, we must know who Jesus is. He is the Son of God and Christ. He is equal to God; the Creator; who exists from eternity past. When we see Him we can see God. God’s divine nature is manifest in Him. When we understand that, God will teach us the works we ought to do. So, what did God reveal to Abraham in regards to the future? He told him that Sodom and Gomorrah will be destroyed. How many righteous men were in that city? Not even ten. Were there five? Or even three? Was Lot a righteous man? He wasn’t saved for being righteous; Lot was also a sinner. But why was he saved? Because he was related to Abraham as Abraham’s family.
Likewise, the whole world is going to be judged and then perish but who will be saved? The righteous. Yet who can become righteous by his own merits? Only those who know Jesus will be saved – those that know that Jesus is the Son of God and Christ – for they have a relationship with Jesus. Only they will be saved. Thus, God sent Jesus not to change the world but to save those that know Him from this world that is going to perish, even if it’s a small number. Therefore, to know Jesus is fundamental to everything. In order to know God, we must know Jesus. To know the works God is doing, we need to know Jesus. Likewise, to be saved we have to know Jesus. Therefore, let us be filled with inspiration through the knowledge of Jesus. We shouldn’t be those who have nothing to do when God is busy doing His work. When God is at work, I should be at work with Him. When God is busy, I should be busy. If God is working fervently, I should have fervor too. Let’s pray that just as a cogwheel is turned, my heart will always move according to God’s heart.
God our Father, fill us with inspiration so that we can partake in the work God does and the work Jesus does. Help us not to be indifferent to the work that our Lord is so passionate about and interested in, but rather, be a part of the work together with the Lord. In Jesus’ name. Amen.
Pastor Ki-Taek Lee
The Director of Sungrak Mission Center
